


Alignment

by Yavannie



Category: Loki: Agent of Asgard, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Concept Fic, Dreams, F/M, Loki Does What He Wants But Also Gets What He Deserves, Loki Is Generally An Asshole, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Multidimensional Shenanigans, Mystery, One Shot, Romance, SHIELD Agent Darcy Lewis, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-17
Updated: 2014-06-17
Packaged: 2018-02-05 01:27:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1800394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yavannie/pseuds/Yavannie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When traces of a virus is discovered in a S.H.I.E.L.D database, it falls to Loki to ensure that Asgardian interests are protected - not to mention his own. He is forced to work along side Junior Agent Lewis, which proves to be an all too interesting challenge when she starts cropping up in his dreams...</p><p>Agent Of Asgard / MCU crossover. Some spoilers for Agent Of Asgard. I started writing this before AoA5, and this is an AU from AoA4 with plenty of non-canonical elements.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Alignment

**Author's Note:**

> Based on [this prompt](http://usedkarma.tumblr.com/post/87317473370/i-think-i-saw-you-in-my-dreams-tasertricks-au) by [Usedkarma](http://usedkarma.tumblr.com/) on tumblr. It's far from an exact fill, but I hope you'll enjoy it all the same <3
> 
> Many thanks to my wonderful beta [DaemonMeg](http://archiveofourown.org/users/DaemonMeg/pseuds/DaemonMeg).

_He is older, and so is she, and they are arguing. She must have come straight from the bath, because a flimsy robe clings to her hips; broad but still swaying with self-confidence and pride. Her dark curls are streaked with grey, and one of her braids has come loose and is sticking out at an angle. It has a comical effect, and when he can’t help his mouth from twitching, her cheeks flush bright red. She crosses her arms, spins around on her heel, and walks._

_“No,”_ _he says, hurrying after her. “I wasn’t–“_

_“Spare me,”_ _she says, and just like that, she is gone._

 

* * *

He woke to the sound of a car horn, even though the signs lining the sidewalks clearly state DON’T HONK. Thor likes to say it’s in the nature of humans to be rebellious. Loki likes to say it’s in their nature to be irritating. After a few seconds of fumbling under his pillow, he pulled his phone out and lit the screen. 5.15 am. Neither late nor early enough to do anything useful.

After an hour of alternating between tossing from side to side and aimless scrolling through social media, he gave up and headed for the bathroom. He felt like someone had stuffed his brain full of half-melted marshmallows, and it wasn’t until the hot water began to run out that he shook his head and closed the tap, deciding that it was time for a double shot of espresso to clear his mind. Today was his day off. Normally, Saturdays were. The steamed up shower door, however, had other plans.

“Loki,” said the All-Mother, making him jump slightly. 

“Please, mother,” he said to the indistinct trio, damp with droplets. “We have to stop meeting like this before word gets out about off-Broadway amateur Greek tragedies.”

“Nothing we haven’t seen before,” said Gaea, her eyes flitting below his waist with a little smile.

He had several snappy retorts ready to roll off his tongue, but right now, he was more interested in finishing the conversation than anything else. “What do you want?” he asked.

“We have a mission for you,” said Freyja. 

“I’m already _on_ a mission,” said Loki. Sometimes he wondered if they were starting to go senile. “Flight to Brussels tomorrow, on to Prague on Wednesday, so unless this is a mission for Belgian chocolates…”

“This takes precedence,” said Idunn. A drop of water trickled down the projection of her face, splitting it neatly in two. “S.H.I.E.L.D have discovered a hidden virus in one of their databases. It is vital that it is removed.”

“If they’ve found it, it would seem they’re well on their way, no?”

“They have found _traces,_ ” said Freyja sternly. “And according to Thor, these traces look remarkably like the ones you left a while back…”

“…While I was on another mission from _you_ ,” Loki reminded them. “Long story short, whatever this is, I didn’t do it. And since when is anyone relying on Thor for tech support?” he added.

The All-Mother fell silent, and Loki waited patiently for them to come back off mute. “Asgardian interests are threatened,” said Freyja after a few moments. “For now, that is all you need to know.”

“Report to Captain America at Avenger’s Mansion by noon,” said Idunn.

Loki snorted. “I can see we already have all the top names in modern technology on the case.”

“Their experts are also informed,” said Idunn. “Make sure they do not become _too_ informed.”

“I’ll do my best to keep your secrets safe,” said Loki solemnly and reached for the shower head. “Or I would. If I actually knew what they were.”

“Good luck, Loki,” said Gaea.

“Thanks,” said Loki and turned the tap, spraying away their images with a satisfying rush of cold water.

 

* * *

To his great amusement, he was frisked at the entrance. Steve Rogers watched, then greeted him curtly. As they rode the elevator down to Sub-Basement 1, Loki made a point of pulling a dagger out to pick his nails. 

“Please don’t,” said Rogers.

“Do you always conduct frisk searches on your consultants?” asked Loki, putting away the knife with an elaborate gesture.

“Yes. But yours was mostly for show.”

“Entirely, you mean.”

Rogers didn’t answer, and stood aside to let him pass when the elevator doors opened. “The virus was detected by a junior agent,” he said while leading the way.

“And you thought _I_ was behind it? You wound me, Captain.”

They stopped in front of a plain door, seemingly insignificant but guarding a treasure beyond measure.

“Unlock please. Officer Rogers, Steven, escorting Laufeyson, Loki.”

The door slid aside, unleashing the humming drone of hundreds of servers. At the main control panel two agents were standing, discussing something. As they approached, one of them turned around - a rodent-like bespectacled man with a chin that looked like it might disappear entirely if someone looked sternly at it. The kind of man who had nothing better to do than to stare at screens all day, presumably. 

“Clearance all done, Harris?” asked Rogers.

“Um, yes,” said the agent, pushing his glasses up on his nose. He frowned at Loki. “And…?"

“The reformed villain you’ll have the displeasure of working with,” he said, considered extending his hand and then thought better of it. The man stared uncomprehendingly at him. “Thrilled, I’m sure,” said Loki.

“We’ll see about that,” said someone behind him.

Loki turned around. The other agent, a young woman, was looking at him curiously.

“This is Agent Lewis,” said Rogers. “She was the one who detected the virus.”

For a split second, Loki experienced déjà vu stronger than anything he’d ever felt before. “Is that so?” he managed. His eyes flitted over her dark curls, her semi-casual attire. Had he seen her somewhere before? She smirked, and a sudden wave of weariness washed over him. Unable to stop himself, he felt his face pull into a grimace. 

Steve Rogers seemed to sense the shift in his mood, and came to stand next to Agent Lewis, placing a hand on her shoulder. “She’s pretty green, so no funny business, you hear?”

She shrugged him off. “No, funny’s cool,” she said. Again with the smirk.

“As long as she doesn’t get in my way,” said Loki, tearing his eyes from her and turning to the control panel. He took a seat by a computer and brought up the terminal, attempted to SSH to a central server but was immediately prompted for a password. There were ways around that, of course, but now wasn’t the time for showing off. He looked at Rogers and shrugged.

“Harris, Laufeyson here will need clearance as well,” said the Captain, and the agent nodded and scurried off. “Limited, mind you,” Rogers called after him. He crossed his arms and looked at Loki with disapproval. “You ought to know that Agent Lewis here lead the team that cleaned up after your last little adventure.” 

Loki glanced at her. “Don't look so surprised,” she said with a lopsided smile. 

He bit back the sour retorts, because they all hinged on the fact that she was a woman and wouldn’t have anyone convinced, least of all himself. Instead, he turned to Steve Rogers again. “I told you, this wasn’t me,” he said, gesturing at the screens.

Rogers appeared unconvinced, but nodded to Agent Lewis and took his leave.

“So this is the infamous Loki,” she said, grabbed a chair, pulled it over to him and sat down. “I’m Darcy.”

“I prefer Agent Lewis.”

“And I prefer Darcy.” Her smile showed a little gap between her front teeth.

Suppressing a sigh, he turned to stare at the screen, mourning the packed carry-on case and the trip to the Old World wasting away with every second.

 

* * *

_His hands are fairly trembling with rage, knotted as they are into fists. He hates the sound of his voice as it betrays him, the words coming in stutters, the eloquence for which he’s so well known utterly undone._

_“Be quiet!”_ _she snaps, interrupting the sputtering stream of accusations. “You’ve done nothing but regurgitate the same tired arguments for the past half hour. For the past_ decade _. For once, just be quiet.”_

_“Enough!”_ _he barks, and she takes an involuntary step back. He takes a deep breath, and then another.“You should learn when to keep your tongue,”_ _he says, stepping closer again._

_She huffs a laugh, then glances down at his hands, half-raised and half-way into_ something _. “Or what?”_ _she says, and it takes all of his willpower to straighten his fingers and flex them._

 

* * *

“This noise is getting on my nerves,” said Agent Lewis, burying her face in her hands. “We should take our work somewhere else.”

“Mm,” said Loki distantly. Her voice was grating worse that the constant humming of the servers, but he had to admit that the thought of another locale was appealing. It was their second day on the case and they were no closer to solving anything. To make matters worse, he’d slept badly, and the faint memory of something he’d dreamt kept hovering just beyond his grasp. 

“It would save us having Righteous Rogers hanging over our shoulders every five minutes,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“ _Your_ shoulder,” corrected Loki. “Likely he’s admiring the view. You should feel flattered, et cetera.”

She made a disgusted noise, then tapped her fingers thoughtfully on the desk. “It could be arranged, you know…” she said, sliding her chair and laptop closer until their elbows were touching. He moved aside a little, and she followed.

“Arrange it then,” he snapped and rose abruptly. His skin crawled with her touch. It made absolutely no sense - she was young, pretty, inordinately clever... And yet the only thing keeping him from being actively mean to her was that it didn’t fit his current agenda.

He made for the door, and once outside the room he came face to face with an agent on guard duty. For no other reason than not wanting to seem uncertain, he kept walking. The agent followed a few steps behind. It was hardly unexpected, but tiresome all the same. He tried to push the thoughts of Darcy Lewis out of his head, but she kept prodding at him even when she wasn’t there. Turning a corner, he saw a couple of vending machines, and jumped eagerly at the chance of an excuse for his little walk. He bought a Cherry Coke for himself and - after a few moments of internal debate - a pink lemonade Snapple and a couple of chocolate bars.

“Ooh, thanks,” said Agent Lewis when he returned with the snacks. She snatched up the Coke can and promptly guzzled down its contents, leaving Loki to scratch at his neck in frustration before resigning and grabbing the remaining bottle.

“Any progress?” he asked, eyes flitting over the rows of tangled code on the screen in front of him.

“No, and yes,” she said, popping a piece of chocolate in her mouth. “I went ahead and arranged that mobile workplace.” She dangled a USB-stick between her finger and thumb, and when he made to grab it, she closed her hand and grinned at him.

 

* * *

_She looms over his shoulder, and her hair brushes against his neck. Once upon a time, he would have found it arousing; now it’s merely a distraction that he flicks away. Then he smells the sun on her skin, and feels a pang of guilt._

_“Have you come to knock my ink-well over again?”_ _he says._

_“The garden bores me.”_

_“Everything bores you.”_

_She says nothing in reply. With each passing week, she spends more time here, among musty scrolls and leather-bound volumes. The first days out of bed were unbearable, her sighing and limping making it nigh on impossible to read. Now, he finds it strangely comforting._

_“We are growing old,”_ _she says finally._

_“Yes.”_

_He replaces the quill in the pot and goes over the runes again. There is something not quite right with the spell, but for the moment, the fault escapes him. She makes a little noise, and before he can stop her, she reaches for the feather pen, wipes it hastily on the rim of the well and strikes two runes in the middle of the scroll, then scribbles another in the margin. The parchment is severely blotted, but the spell comes to life before his eyes. In a rare display of affection, she places her hand on his back, and for a moment, all is as it should be._

 

* * *

“Why did you pick a library, of all places,” hissed Agent Lewis. “We can’t even talk properly here.”

“Yes, why indeed,” said Loki.

The 96th Street Library was much like any other. Tranquil, slightly dusty, and complete with free wifi and a bespectacled woman in her late fifties who glared daggers at anyone who as much as coughed.

“I’m hungry,” complained Lewis.

“Go eat something.”

“You know I can’t leave you alone with that.”

Loki shrugged, then squinted at the screen, copied a few lines of code and ran a search, but no, it checked out. Next to him, Darcy Lewis was twirling a lock of hair around her finger while surveying his efforts.

“We could just go back to my place,” she mused after a while. “We could order takeout or something.”

“No,” said Loki.

“Shh!” said a man a couple of tables down the row.

“Official business,” said Darcy and flashed her badge at him before turning to Loki again. “Fine. Your place then.”

The idea was definitely more appealing. Given enough time, he could set up his own sniffer to tap in on their work. “Tomorrow, maybe,” he said.

“Wait,” she said, leaning closer. She pushed her glasses up, then pointed at a string of code near the bottom of the screen. “There. That looks like a signature.”

She pulled the laptop over to her side of the table and entered a few commands. There were hits. More than one. Four or five instances in this part alone. He was impressed. There was no point in trying to deny it; Darcy was good. Their arms were touching again, and somehow, it didn’t matter too much anymore.

 

* * *

_When she finally returns to their quarters, she is walking unsteadily, and he can hear her trip over something in the dark._

_“Where have you been?”_ _he asks as she throws herself on the bed._

_“I told you,”_ _she slurs. “Riding with Sif and the others.”_

_“You smell more of mead than of horses,”_ _he says._

_“Jealous, Loki? I thought we were past that by now.”_

_“I would rather you ride with me,”_ _he says, running his hand over the swell of her hip. She doesn’t reply, and a moment later, she is snoring._

 

* * *

“So, am I here to check if she’s a liability or not?”

“Please, Verity,” said Loki.

“I’m sitting right here, you know,” said Darcy without taking her eyes off the code scrolling on the laptop screen.

“Am I though?” Verity sat back in the sofa, those unforgiving eyes boring into his. Clearly, this had been a mistake.

“You're supposed to be _my_ friend,” he said, then cringed at how very like an annoying little brat he sounded.

“Answer the question, Loki.”

“No?”

“You really are the worst liar ever.”

“I’ll have you know that the vast majority of the known multiverse would dispute that. Violently.”

“They don’t know you like I do.”

Darcy tore her eyes from the computer and looked at Verity curiously. “What’s the deal with you then?”

Verity grabbed the bowl of snacks from the table and set it down on the armrest, then crammed a handful into her mouth. “Loki can tell you the reason why I'm here,” she mumbled. “I’d say that’s only fair.”

Loki’s gaze lingered on the crumbs dropping onto the cushions. “She’s sort of my arch-nemesis,” he said, and Verity shrugged at Darcy. “Maybe antithesis is a better word. She can always tell when someone’s being dishonest.”

“Really?” said Darcy. “Is it like a superpower?”

“That depends on if you’re going to report it to your umbrella thing,” said Verity.

“It’s S.H.I.E.L.D,” said Loki, but no one seemed to take note.

“I won’t,” said Darcy, and Verity relaxed visibly. “Can I try you?” Darcy swiveled the chair around and swung her leg over to straddle it, resting her arms on the back. 

“Sure, whatever.”

“My middle name is Sarah. Truth or lie?”

“She’s a person, not a polygraph,” protested Loki.

Verity gave him an unimpressed look, then turned to Darcy again. “Lie. I could have checked that earlier though. Give me something harder.”

“My toenails are painted.”

“So they are.”

“Pink.”

“Lie.”

“Red.”

“Lie.”

“Green.”

“Have you been watching The Big Lebowski?” asked Verity with a smirk.

“Oh my god, that’s my favorite movie!” said Darcy.

“That’s not true.”

“Isn’t it? Okay, how about this one.” Darcy glanced over at Loki before continuing. “I’ve seen Thor’s junk.”

Verity looked at her over the rim of her glasses. “Tell me more.”

“I can’t believe this,” said Loki.

“You’d better.”

“Can I get a hell yeah,” said Darcy, extending her hand to Verity for a high-five.

Ten minutes later, they had retreated to the balcony with a bottle of wine and the rest of the snacks, leaving Loki to smatter away angrily at the keyboard. He told himself it was just as well. Their little heart-to-heart no doubt involved trash talking him, but it did give him time to work on his own little project. He’d already isolated several interesting tidbits, some of them giving him more pause than others. 

It wasn’t until well past midnight that Agent Lewis walked slightly unsteadily out of his apartment to the cab she had ordered. He watched her go from the balcony. A few moments later Verity joined him, smelling of the expensive soap he kept stored away in the bathroom cupboard.

“She really likes you,” she said.

“I know,” said Loki.

“I don’t know why, but she does.”

“Thanks a bunch.”

His friend ignored that. “If you treat her bad, I’m going to kick your ass.”

“I’m a god, Verity.”

“Do I look like I care?”

 

* * *

_He knows her every curve, could trace each and every silvery scar in the dark if needs be. Coming together after a long time apart is the closest thing he knows to home._

 

* * *

 

When he woke that morning, he remembered the dream. He remembered it with dreadful clarity, and what was more, he remembered the others. After a few minutes of debating the matter, he texted Darcy saying that he felt unwell. Then he started drinking and didn’t stop until he fell asleep again.

 

* * *

The Tiresome Trio appeared in the dishwater the next evening, pushing the foamy suds aside and threatening to swell into shape.

“No!” said Loki. “Stay down there. I mopped the floor yesterday."

The water churned discontentedly, but stayed where it was.

“You always were such a tidy boy,” said Gaea, pushing Freyja aside to fit into the frame of the wash basin.

“How is your investigation coming along?” asked Freyja, shouldering back Gaea. “We fear you are becoming distracted.”

“What?”

“The female agent,” said Freyja. “She desires you. An unfortunate coincidence.”

“And you have a spectacular inability to keep it in your breeches,” said Idunn. 

“There are so many good comebacks to that it’s not even funny,” said Loki. “Besides, it’s hardly my fault that women throw themselves at me, now is it?”

“You do not need her in your life, Loki,” said Freyja. “Not this time.”

“Oh, I agree,” he said, then narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean _this_ time?”

The All-Mother exchanged knowing looks. “It is only fair that we tell him,” said Gaea.

“So that he might dispel her from his thoughts,” said Idunn.

“You have met her before,” said Freyja. “In another life.”

Loki gripped the table top tightly. Torn scraps of dreams flitted through his mind, mingled with memories of the other one. And yet, something didn’t make sense.

“That can’t be right,” he said. “She’s young. I couldn’t have…”

“Not in _that_ other life, Loki.”

The water in the sink rose, forcing him to step back. In what looked like a slow-motion video of a water balloon popping, the liquid separated into a myriad of tiny droplets, spread out like a sky full of stars.

“This is but one of many dimensions,” echoed the voice of the All-Mother from all around him. “You know this. You have even visited some of them.”

In each slowly revolving droplet, he could see images of himself - at least they looked more or less like him. 

“Often, patterns repeat themselves. Similar ties are formed.” Now the drops changed. Some of them showed Odin. Plenty showed Thor. There was Lorelei, and David, and Kate, and even Verity. And then, there was Darcy Lewis. She looked just the same, and then again not at all. Her face hovered before him, tiny and perfect, a slender crown adorning her brow. 

“She was Aesir?” he asked.

“Your marriage was arranged,” came Freyja’s voice. 

“A poor match,” said Idunn.

“But a passionate one,” said Gaea. “No wonder you are drawn to one another again.”

“I guess this explains the dreams…” mused Loki.

“Dreams?” the All-Mother said as one.

He silently cursed himself for divulging more than needed, then decided it was worth it if it meant finding out more. “I’ve had these dreams of someone who looks like her.”

“Echoes,” said Freyja.

“Shadows,” said Idunn.

“Reflections,” said Gaea. 

“Nothing you need bother yourself with,” said Freyja. “The dreams will disappear when she does.”

“Work hard, Loki,” said Idunn. “So that we might _wash_ another crime from your past.”

“Wash..? Wait, no!”

The presence left the kitchen, and the water hung in the air for a second as if unsure of what to do with itself before dropping down cartoon-style, soaking him and the floor both. As if he didn’t already have enough to worry about, his phone rang. It was Darcy. He spent four long signals hesitating before he pushed his wet hair aside and answered it.

“ _You feeling any better yet?_ ”

Never before had he been happier that Darcy wasn’t Verity. “Oh, much better. Why?”

“ _Because while you were nursing whatever version of man-cold Asgardians get, I’ve been working on that signature we tracked down, and guess what? The bug’s gone. I found it, flushed it, fixed it, and now you owe me a drink_.”

A change of clothes and a taxi ride later, he was sitting in a club with French pop music blaring from the speakers, sipping a G&T. Darcy was wearing the kind of dress you wore when you had something to prove, and unfortunately, it had exactly the desired effect. He tried his best not to spend too much time looking at her, but as usual, Darcy kept talking.

“Verity warned me about you.” She had to shout a little for him to hear her.

“I imagine she did. She’s nice like that.”

“What?”

He leaned closer. “I said... Nevermind.”

Midgardian music was, on the whole, more interesting than Asgardian, perhaps simply for being novel to his ears. Darcy had decent taste, but as much as he enjoyed M83, he would have preferred a quieter place to celebrate. He might have tried his hand at a spell, but he’d have to explain it to her, and besides, the runes he’d etched into the table to repel others from sitting down at their booth was enough stepping outside the lines for one night. Darcy scooted closer on the sofa, beckoning for him to lean down to listen.

“Steve asked me on a date,” she said.

“Who’s Steve?” he asked, even though he knew full well. The look she gave him made it abundantly clear that she knew that he knew. “Oh, _that_ Steve,” he said. “Good for you. You’d make a cute couple.”

“Please,” she said with a snort. “Anyway, I already had a date, didn’t I?”

“You did?”

“Yes!” she said, throwing her hands out.

He smiled briefly. “I'm hardly the kind of guy you’d want to date. That _anyone_ would want to date.”

“That’s what Verity said.”

“And you should listen to her. Steve Rogers, on the other hand, is probably _exactly_ the kind of guy you’d want to date. The type who buys you chocolates and expensive jewelry to make up for the time he spends on life-threatening missions to save the world. And flowers. Lots of flowers. He’ll probably pre order for your birthday several years ahead–”

“He’s boring,” she interrupted him.

“He’s Captain America.”

“You should learn when to shut up, Loki,” she said, then kissed him full on the lips.

It was almost frightening how good it felt, how familiar she tasted. That was probably the reason why he didn’t try to stop it, why he let it go on until they’d come dangerously close to being thrown out of a taxi, until she had shoved a pile of laundry from the sofa onto the floor to make more space, until he was so wrapped up in her he forgot anything and everything else for a moment. By the time she was asleep, he’d remembered again, so he snuck into the kitchen where her bag was and backed up her laptop and their work. Afterwards, he slipped away by stepping through shadow rather than facing the awkwardness of morning coffee with someone he’d just fucked and then fucked over.

 

* * *

_It’s their wedding night and she has never looked more lovely. Her cheeks aflush with mead and dancing, she pushes him onto the bed, pinning him down with strong arms._

_“We should go slow,” he breathes as she fumbles with his lacings._

_“Why?” she says with a laugh, tugging at a leather strap until it yields._

_“I would not risk hurting you.”_

_She throws her head back in raucous laughter, then reaches down to cup his cheek. “Oh, Loki,” she says. “How very little you know.”_

_His face grows hot with harm, but soon, her words are forgotten as she shows him just how little._

 

* * *

He woke to the phone buzzing underneath his pillow. He left it where it was.

 

* * *

The All-Mother was right. Severing the ties stopped the nightly visits, and he was left to daydream instead. Working proved a good distraction until he ran into the evidence he’d been dreading to find. Evidence that needed a second pair of eyes, and the expert he needed was no longer around. Unsurprisingly, one side-effect of being an ass to Darcy was that Verity disappeared. Around the time the former gave up calling when he didn’t pick up, the latter stopped answering his calls. Now, when he really needed her help, he had to try to get a hold of her the old-fashioned way.

“I tried serenading but I guess you couldn’t hear me,” he said, clinging to the drainpipe.

“Are you out of your fucking mind?” said Verity through the half-opened window. “You’re going to get yourself killed.”

“So let me in.” He made a show of losing his grip, and she pushed the potted plants aside and reached out for him. He let go of the pipe, took her hand and danced easily inside. “Gotta love these shoes,” he said.

Verity was not impressed. “Get out,” she said, pointing at the door.

“Oh no,” he said, backing along the wall, away from her menacing scowl. “I'm like a vampire. Once you invite me in you’re screwed.”

“Really? Then I rescind your invitation.”

“I need your help.”

“Of course you do. Get. _Out_.” This time she pointed at the window.

“I’ll tell you why I cut Darcy off.”

“Why don’t you tell _her_?”

“I’ll tell you that as well.”

He told her. He told her more than he had planned; more than he should have, probably, but then again, it was worth it if it meant keeping her as an ally. If he wanted her as a friend, he would probably have to work harder.

“You shouldn’t have slept with her,” she said, and there really wasn’t anything he could say to contradict her.

“I know,” he said. “Although I did warn her repeatedly that I’m a terrible person.”

“No excuses, Loki. Just don’t, okay?”

“Fine.”

“What was it you wanted my help with?”

Loki pulled out a USB stick. “There was a reason why the virus looked like the one I planted a while back. It was, in fact, me again. In a weird twist of events, I seem to have been spying on myself - from the future.”

“You’ve lost me,” said Verity.

“It’s complicated. It really is. But luckily, you don’t need to understand it. All I need is for you to look at some things and tell me if they’re true or not.”

She barked a laugh. “No, no, no. If you want my help, I want to know what I’m doing.”

“That’s going to take a while.”

“Make yourself comfortable,” she said, gesturing at the sofa before disappearing into the kitchen to fetch drinks.

They were almost finished when the doorbell rang. Loki glanced at Verity and rose, prepared to make a quick exit.

“Are you expecting someone?” he asked.

“I am, actually. You can stay put.”

It was Darcy Lewis. He might have known. Darcy glared at Loki, and Loki glared at Verity. “What’s this?” he asked. “Some kind of intervention?”

“You think it’s all about you, don’t you?” said Darcy. “Give me that.” She nodded to the USB on the table and held out her hand.

Reluctantly, he handed it to her. It didn’t matter much - she would be able to see some of what he had been doing, but the majority of the work was elsewhere.

“I’m coming over tomorrow, and you’re going to give me everything you stole,” said Darcy. “Then you’ll wipe it. All of the backups, everything. And you won’t touch it tonight. I want to see it all.”

It was like a punch in the stomach, and the worst thing was that he knew he deserved it. He turned to Verity. “You did this, didn’t you?”

She nodded grimly. “And make sure you do what she tells you, because I’ll be around to check after.”

All things considered, he was likely in for a restless night.

 

* * *

_They are attending a tedious ceremony and have taken refuge to a bench in a dark alcove. Her skirts are hiked up around her thighs and her fingers are gripping the stone slab so desperately one might think the world was shaking. Her undergarments are pushed aside, and he is working her methodically with his thumb. At her insistence, he has two fingers inside her, but he keeps forgetting to use them. Still, she has her eyes closed and her breathing is coming shallow, and when she lets out a low whimper he feels a rush of nervous excitement. Suddenly, her legs go stiff, one foot straining against the stone wall in front of her. It only takes seconds from here, and she can't help but letting a curse slip her - or maybe she does it on purpose? - before arching against his hand. When he feels her clenching around his fingers, he's so close himself that a single touch would be enough bring him over the edge, so he grabs her hand and shoves it against his crotch._

 

* * *

He woke up taut as a bowstring, chest heaving and with a hard-on that almost hurt. Momentarily confused, he brought his fingers to his nose and sniffed them, then laughed at himself before shoving his hand under the sheets. It took him all of ten seconds of fucking his own hand, and it wasn’t nearly as satisfying as he would have liked.

She turned up a couple of hours later, and without Verity to bounce their tensions off, they both acted surprisingly civil. He offered her lunch, and she accepted. While she supervised the data transfer, he cooked, and once it was done, they sat down at the kitchen table. After a few minutes of chewing in silence, he put his fork down and looked at her.

“I handled it badly,” he said.

She glanced up. “Which part?”

“All of them. I handed everything badly.”

She shrugged and stabbed at a piece of chicken. “Apart from the actual sex, you’re not wrong. The sex was fucking amazing.”

“I don’t suppose you…”

“No.”

“No.”

 

* * *

 

 

As promised, Verity came around that evening.

“So, did you wipe everything like you said you would?”

“No.” There really was no point in lying. None whatsoever.

She sighed. “Why, Loki?”

“I want to see her again.”

 

* * *

_They are sparring, and already, she is much stronger than him; already fit to train with the Valkyries if that had been the path laid out for her. She sends him flying into the dust with spectacular ease, not for one second relenting, but marking his throat with the weighted spear before reaching down to help him up. He shakes his head and ducks aside, remaining seated on the gravel._

_“Once we are married you’ll have no use for those,” he says, nodding to the short axes she carries. They spar with blunt weapons, but she carries them for the added weight, he knows._

_“Once we are married I’ll use them to keep you from my bed,” she says with a smirk._

_“We will share a bed,” he says, getting to his feet. “Whether you like it or not.”_

_Her smile dies and she makes a sudden, forceful move. Her spear knocks his legs away from under him and before he can even gasp for breath, her boot is at his throat._

_“You will not as much as look at me without my express permission,” she says. “Understood?”_

_She keeps her heel against his windpipe until the world begins shrinking and he nods weakly._

 

* * *

“I wanted to explain,” he said. 

He had arranged to meet her in Central Park, thinking to get them ice cream if it was sunny, or a coffee to go to the Ladies’ Pavilion if it rained. As chance had it, it was overcast, and Darcy refused any and all offers of refreshment.

“No need to explain anything,” she said, flipping her foot impatiently up and down where she sat on the bench.

“You hold quite the grudge, don’t you?” he snapped, then immediately regretted it.

“What’s the point, though?” she asked. “I mean, what are you hoping to achieve?”

“A second chance.”

“At what?”

“At whatever you want.”

“We’re not having this conversation,” she said, stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. “Last chance to clear your hard drives. Verity will check again tonight.”

He grit his teeth. He really hadn’t wanted it to come to this. “There’s something you should know. I haven’t told you, because frankly, I thought it might freak you out.”

She ignored him. “I took your advice, Loki. I went on a date with Captain America, and you know what? He actually answers the phone when I call.”

“Well, he _is_ your boss.”

She gave him an incredulous look, then turned on her heel and started walking.

“Wait,” he said, getting up to go after her. “Did Verity ever tell you about the dreams?”

“Spare me,” she said, and just like that, she was gone.

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
